British and U.S. officials said Wednesday they have information suggesting the Russian jetliner that crashed in the Egyptian desert may have been brought down by a bomb, and Britain said it was suspending flights to and from the Sinai Peninsula as a precaution.

Intercepted communications played a role in the tentative conclusion that the Islamic State group's Sinai affiliate planted an explosive device on the plane, said a U.S. official briefed on the matter. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to discuss intelligence matters publicly.

AP confirms that US intelligence agencies have preliminary evidence, including intercepts, suggesting a bomb brought down the Russian plane.

The official and others said there had been no formal judgment rendered by the CIA or other intelligence agencies, and that forensic evidence from the blast site, including the airplane's black box, which was damaged in the crash, was still being analyzed.

"Now in Egypt, the preparatory work with participation of experts of the IAC and France’s BEA [the Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for civil aviation safety] is being done to copy the recorded information, taking all possible precautionary measures."

The official added that intelligence analysts don't believe the operation was ordered by Islamic State leaders in Raqqa, Syria. Rather, they believe that if it was a bomb, it was planned and executed by the Islamic State's affiliate in the Sinai, which operates autonomously.

Other officials cautioned that intercepted communications can sometimes be misleading and that it's possible the evidence will add up to a conclusion that there was no bomb.

Egyptian security forces stand guard by debris of a Russian airplane at the crash site.

Image: AP Photo/Associated Press

European countries halt flights over concerns Russian jet was bombed

The United Kingdom suspended all flights from the Egyptian resort of Sharm el Sheik in the Sinai Peninsula on Wednesday amid concerns that an "explosive device" caused of the Russian plane crash over the weekend.

UK gov now says significant chance plane downed by a bomb.They stopped all but essential travel to Sharm, UK citizens will be returned home

Downing Street became concerned that the plane was purposefully downed after Prime Minister David Cameron spoke to Egyptian President Sisi on Tuesday evening to discuss what the country was doing about security at the Sharm el-Sheikh airport.

“While the investigation is still ongoing we cannot say categorically why the Russian jet crashed. But as more information has come to light we have become concerned that the plane may well have been brought down by an explosive device," according to a Downing Street statement.

A relative of those on the Metrojet flight that crashed in Egypt react as they gather to grieve at a hotel near St. Petersburg's Pulkovo airport outside St.Petersburg, Russia, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2015.

Image: AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky

Hours after the UK announcement, the Irish Airline Authority made a similar proclamation for Irish airlines, stating that they were ordered to stop all flights to and from Sharm El Sheikh.

Other UK officials were beginning to comment on the investigation. UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond told the BBC, "We have concluded that there is a significant possibility that the crash was caused by an explosive device on board the aircraft."

And another "senior UK source" told the outlet that "fresh evidence from the past 24 hours pointed towards a bomb causing the crash."

Egyptian response: Dismissals and denials

Tuesday, President Sisi, currently on a state visit to the UK, dismissed speculation that ISIS was responsible for bringing the plane down as "propaganda."

Meanwhile, Officials in Egypt insist Sharm el-Sheikh airport is safe and say they wished Britain had waited for the result of the ongoing investigation of the Russian plane crash before suspending flights to the airport.

A top aviation official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press that teams from Russian and British airlines assessed Sharm el-Sheikh airport security procedures on Wednesday and "left without making a single remark about it."

Egypt's presidential spokesman Alaa Youssef added "we were wishing they would wait for the result of the ongoing investigation."

And Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry also cautioned against the intelligence claims on Wednesday, saying, "This is a matter for the investigation to clarify and we should not prejudge or take any measures that might have implications. Implication also that the fact that a very large number of Egyptians who rely heavily on the tourist industry."

Still, reprisal in Egypt was swift: Abdel-Wahab Ali, the head of Sharm el-Sheikh airport, was relieved of his post Wednesday night. But, in a bit of twist, Adel Mahgoub, chairman of the state company that runs Egypt's civilian airports, told reporters that Ali was "promoted" to be his assistant and that said promotion had nothing to do with media skepticism surrounding the airport's security.

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